Debris tolerant seal

Abstract

An improved debris tolerant seal for a rotary combustor is disposed on the inlet end ring header so as to extend radially inwardly therefrom and cooperates with a parallel spaced apart surface and diverging surface on an adjacent refractory ring to form a seal which will not become jammed with waste materials and allows for radial and axial thermal expansion of the rotary combustor.

What is claimed: 
     
       1. An improved debris tolerant seal between a refractory ring and a ring header disposed at an inlet end of a rotary combustor which rotates about an inclined axis and in which municipal solid waste is burned, said seal comprising a circumferential bar attached to and extending radially inwardly from the ring header, the circumferential bar is made up of a plurality of segments, each of said segments being disposed parallel to a plane perpendicular to the axis of the rotary combustor, the refractory ring having a pair of outer sheathed surfaces adjacent the circumferential bar, one of the sheathed surfaces being parallel to and spaced from the circumferential bar and the other sheathed surface being contiguous with the one sheathed surface and inclined so as to extend radially inwardly and away from said inlet end of said combustor, and away from said circumferential bar whereby large pieces of debris are prevented from entering the space between the one sheathed surface and the circumferential bar a small debris can pass therebetween, the circumferential bar having a refractory material disposed on the combustor side thereof to prevent the circumferential bar from burning out. 
     
     
       2. The improved debris tolerant seal of claim 1, wherein the refractory material is thickest where the circumferential bar contacts the ring header and tapers inwardly toward the radial inner margin of the circumferential bar. 
     
     
       3. The improved debris tolerant seal of claim 1, wherein the ring header has a flat cylindrical ring which extends axially therefrom and the circumferential bar is welded to the flat ring. 
     
     
       4. The improved debris tolerant seal of claim 1, wherein refractory ring has a third sheathed surface contiguous with the one sheathed surface and forming an axially disposed cylindrical ring. 
     
     
       5. The improved debris tolerant seal of claim 1, wherein the circumferential bar has a radially inner margin forming a circle the center of which is on the axis of the rotary combustor.